Vermicomposters Unite! Official Worm Farmers Thread

[Dr.D81]

I get the organic brown eggs that come in a clear plastic container w ith 2 dozen eggs. No cartons. I'm using coco and peatmoss instead of cardboard.

Try and sell your extra castings locally then. I plan on having 4 bins stacked in 3's going by next month. So 12 bins total. I have a bunch of people who don't have room for bins. They order worm power castings from build a soil. Which is far better quality than the agrowynn castings I used to use. The worm power costs $50 with shipping for a cu ft. So I'm going to flip mine for $25 -$30 a cu ft.. I should have 10 extra cu ft per batch.

Right on you should do well. I will be going to 275 gallon batches of tea next year so i will be using as much as i can produce.

 

[Mohican]

Ohhhhh - I can't wait to see it!

 

[4ftRoots]

I freeze all my food scraps before feeding them to the worms also.

There is, no joke, more worm food in my freezer than people food!

This was getting on my nerves so I did a test and I found freezing is not necessary but does improve the breakdown time. The best thing you can do for your worm bin is grinding the food. I bought an 8 cup grinder that I collect and grind food in. takes about 2 days for regular food to disappear and a week for high acid things like orange peals. One day I plan to reroute my garbage disposal to a strainer then down the drain.

 

[drekoushranada]

Gosh I need to hurry up and get a worm bin going. I Think I will purchase a worm factory 360 this weekend. If you all suggest something else please feel free to let me know.

 

[HelpHub]

Gosh I need to hurry up and get a worm bin going. I Think I will purchase a worm factory 360 this weekend. If you all suggest something else please feel free to let me know.

I'm happy with mine. Upside is harvesting castings and separating the worms when you do so is really easy. Downside might be that they are kinda expensive. Well built though...

 

[Mohican]

I just use a party tub for beer cans and fill it with a 4 inch layer of promix (to absorb the goodness) and then on top of that a #20 smart pot full of promix and scraps. Cover the smart pot to keep out the bugs and you are done. It worked great! Now I just fill a trashcan with promix and part of a worm bin and grow in it and feed the worms. It works great!



Cheers,
Mo

 

[HelpHub]

This was getting on my nerves so I did a test and I found freezing is not necessary but does improve the breakdown time..

My worm bin is in my kitchen so I found that freezing the food scraps first keeps down the fruit fly population.

 

[machinegreenkelly]

I am planning on harvesting in 4-5 weeks and I am wondering if there would be any real benefit to purchase Uncle Jim's 2000 count red wigglers and split them between my 30x 20gal fabric pots to assist with aeration and added castings? This is an outdoor grow and the daytime temps will be around 70-75F and dropping to low 40's during the evenings. I plan on recycling the soil after harvest and was going to put worms in the recycled soil at that point anyways. Thanks.

 

[hyroot]

Here's a thought. I have about 10 7gal fabric pots. I don't use them anymore.

I want a flow through system. What if I were to drill holes in the bottom of the fabric pots and stack them like wooden flow through bins. Do you think it would work good.

Or I could cut out most of the bottom and replace with 1/4" mesh which I already have from when I made my sifter.

I understand 7 gal is small for worms but stacked....

I want to use what I already have in stock. So Rubbermaid bins or fabric pots.


Thoughts. ......?

@Rrog what do you think.

 

[Mohican]

Smart pots work great. You could wrap them with Glad wrap if they get too dry.

Animal Cookies Worm Bin Dried:



Cheers,
Mo

 

[Rrog]

You could stack the bags as you suggested. Just need enough holes in the bag bottom for them to climb upwards.

I used 15 gallon geopots for worm bins a few winters ago. Pots were on wire mesh bases for ventilation. These were simply in-tact bags, no stacking and it worked great!

I think worms work many ways

 

[hyroot]

You could stack the bags as you suggested. Just need enough holes in the bag bottom for them to climb upwards.

I used 15 gallon geopots for worm bins a few winters ago. Pots were on wire mesh bases for ventilation. These were simply in-tact bags, no stacking and it worked great!

I think worms work many ways

I started braining out on the pots. Thinking of cutting out 4 big holes on the bottom of each. Just leaving a strip cross shape of fabric on the bottom to hold it together.

Then make an individual table screen for each pot to sit on. Then set a table screen on top of a pot. Then stack another pot on top of that screen. Worms can crawl through the screen. Having a table screen between each pot would make the pots more stable and even when stacked.


I already have some 1x2's just need to grab 3 more. I already have the 1/4" mesh. Then some plywood for the bottom base and the lid . Then I can stack 4 pots and be stable. Another $15 to spend.

 

[Rrog]

Then make an individual table screen for each pot to sit on. Then set a table screen on top of a pot. Then stack another pot on top of that screen. Worms can crawl through the screen. Having a table screen between each pot would make the pots more stable and even when stacked.

Perfect. You will see benefits of the fabric sides for breathing, vs a hard side plastic worm bin.

 

[Richard Drysift]

Just harvested another tray of perty black gold! They just won't eat eggshells- these have been tossed from bottom to top tray a couple times already in hopes they will be gone yet here they still are...should I just get rid of them or does anyone think the worms will eat them eventually? Eggshells do provide calcium to the finished compost right? What else can I give them instead?

 

[4ftRoots]

I hardly sift well. As the castings sit they break down the matter even further until you use it. When I topdress you can see chunks of crab shell and egg shells and they just get buried over time of worms rooting around. Your castings look great

 

[Richard Drysift]

I hardly sift well. As the castings sit they break down the matter even further until you use it. When I topdress you can see chunks of crab shell and egg shells and they just get buried over time of worms rooting around. Your castings look great

Hey thanx...so I can just crush them up a bit & leave them in the castings? I plan to add the castings to some recycled soil but won't be used for awhile; it still needs to "cook" in a tote bin for a month or so at least.

 

[4ftRoots]

Yeah if you want you can crush them up to give more surface area but it will still take a while to break down. It really acts as aeration until it becomes small enough to be ingested by worms. Letting it cook would be a good way to break it down further but putting it in a true living no till bed with worms is the only way to go in my opinion.

I don't know if you sift all the worms out but leaving 10 or more in finished castings helps keep it in great condition.

 

[4ftRoots]

I started braining out on the pots. Thinking of cutting out 4 big holes on the bottom of each. Just leaving a strip cross shape of fabric on the bottom to hold it together.

Then make an individual table screen for each pot to sit on. Then set a table screen on top of a pot. Then stack another pot on top of that screen. Worms can crawl through the screen. Having a table screen between each pot would make the pots more stable and even when stacked.


I already have some 1x2's just need to grab 3 more. I already have the 1/4" mesh. Then some plywood for the bottom base and the lid . Then I can stack 4 pots and be stable. Another $15 to spend.

If you don't want to destroy the pots you can scatter the holes and make them much smaller since worms are really small. 1/2 inch holes should do it and 1inch would be more than enough. Then you can use the pots later and they wont fall apart on you now. And dumping the castings wont be as messy. I like the mesh idea. But I would put it in the base of each pot so it is easier to keep track of. KISS

Edit: I really think you will hate the cross on the bottom. It will spill castings everywhere

 

[hyroot]

If you don't want to destroy the pots you can scatter the holes and make them much smaller since worms are really small. 1/2 inch holes should do it and 1inch would be more than enough. Then you can use the pots later and they wont fall apart on you now. And dumping the castings wont be as messy. I like the mesh idea. But I would put it in the base of each pot so it is easier to keep track of. KISS

Edit: I really think you will hate the cross on the bottom. It will spill castings everywhere

That's what I meant about placing the mesh at the bottom of each pot. Not inside the pot. More like set each pot on top of the mesh / frame. Cut out 4 large holes. Then I can stack them and have flow through style bins.


I don't plan on ever using the pots again for mj. Maybe use them again for veggies. I've had them for 5 years. They dry inconsistently. Without roots sucking up moisture. The bins moisture should be easier to manage.

 

[Richard Drysift]

Yeah if you want you can crush them up to give more surface area but it will still take a while to break down. It really acts as aeration until it becomes small enough to be ingested by worms. Letting it cook would be a good way to break it down further but putting it in a true living no till bed with worms is the only way to go in my opinion.

I don't know if you sift all the worms out but leaving 10 or more in finished castings helps keep it in great condition.

I put the eggshells back in the top tray hoping they will eventually get broken down. Caught a whole bunch of worms -maybe 30 of em- in my castings this time even though I was trying to sift them out. They sure populated these trays wicked fast- gonna hafta add more soon. Figured they would be very happy rolling around in the recycle bin. Thanx for the advice